ALEXANDER AND HIS EMPIRE; HELLENISTIC CULTUREWorld History: Patters of Interaction; Kasaysayang Daigdig: Batayang Aklat para sa Ikatlong Taon

Alexander and his Empire

• When Sparta and Athens were battling each other for supremacy, the nearby Kingdom of Macedonia had a scheme to control the whole of Greece.

• King Philip II wanted to seize control of Greece. He planned of moving and conquering Persia and hoped to avenge the Persian invasion of Greece.

• In 359 BC, Philip II became king of Macedonia. Immediately after being named king, he prepared to invade Greece.

• Demosthenes who is an Ahenian orator tried to warn the Greeks of the threat Philip and his army posed.

ATHENS

THEBES

MACEDONIANS

• Battle of Chaeronea ended Greek freedom and independence.

• Macedonian kingdom successfully conquered many city-states but let them retain self-government in local affairs.

GREEK CITY- STATES

Alexander the Great

• Alexander was proclaimed King of Macedonia after the gruesome death of his father.

• Alexander – 20 years old when he became King in 336 BC

Under Arisotle’s teaching, he had learned science, geography, and literature

As a young boy, Alexander learned to ride a horse, use weapons, and command troops.

Invasion of Persia

• Alexander carried out Philip’s plan to invade Persia.

• He and his 35,000 men were able to defeat some 40,000 Persian men at the Granicus River in Anatolia.

• His victory alarmed Darius III.

PERSIANS VERSUS THE MACEDONIANS

DARIUS III ALEXANDER III (THE GREAT)

50,000-70,000 men

Less than 35k men

• Alexander ordered his finest troops to break through a weak point in the Persian lines. After doing it successfully, the frightened Persian King fled along with his panicked army.

• Their fleeing gave Alexander power/ supremacy over Anatolia.

• 332 BC Alexander entered Egypt and founded the city of Alexandria. It would be known for its lighthouse, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.

• He looted Persian wealth after occupying the capitals of Babylon, Susa, and Persepolis (Persia’s royal capial). He left Persia and proceeded to South Asia in 327 BC.

• In 323 BC Alexander returned to Babylon.o It is in this year that the great Alexander fell ill of

fever and eventually died.

Alexander and his lovers

• Hephaestion – Macedonian nobleman and general of Alexander’s armyo Lucian wrote in his book On Slips of

the Tongue that Hephaestion stayed the whole night with Alexander in the latter’s tent.

o Diogenes of Sinope accused Alexander of being “ruled by Hephaestion’s thighs”.

o Arrian tells of an account on Alexander’s great grief when Hephaestion died. He says Alexander “flung himself on the body of his friend and lay there nearly all day long in tears, and refused to be parted from him until he was dragged away by force by his Companions."

• Of course Alexander also has female lovers named Campaspe (from Larisa), Barzine (a noble Persian), and Roxana (Roshanak in Iranian, meaning little star).

• Bagoas – a Persian eunuch/ lady boy who, according to some accounts, developed an intimate relationship with Darius and Alexander (He was a calamite).

HELLENISTIC CULTURE

• After Alexander’s death, a vibrant new culture emerged.

• Greek culture (also known as the Hellenic) blended with the Egyptians, Persian, and Indian influences. This blending became known as the Hellenistic Culture.

• KOINE- is the popular spoken language used in Hellenistic cities such as Alexandria.

TRADE AND CULTURAL DIVERSITY

• Alexandriao Became the foremost

center of commerce and Hellenistic civilization. It occupied a strategic site

on the western edge of the Nile delta.

Became an international community (rich mixtures of customs and traditions from Egypt and from Aegean.

Alexandria’s Greatest Attractions

• Residents and visitors admired Alexandria’s great beauty.

• Its greatest attractions were its famous museum and the library.

• MUSEUM- temple dedicated to the MUSES, Greek goddesses of arts and sciences.

The MUSEUM and the Library

• The Museum was an institute of advanced study.o Contained art galleries, zoo,

botanical gardens, and even a dining hall.

• The Alexandrian Library contained collections of half a million papyrus scrolls which included many of the masterpieces of ancient literature.o It was the first true research library

in the world where it helped promote the work of a gifted group of scholars.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• During the Hellenistic period, the center of scholarship gradually shifted away from Athens.

• Hellenistic scholars succeeded brilliantly in preserving Greek and Egyptian learning in the sciences.

ASTRONOMY

MATH AND PHYSICS

PHILOSOPHY AND ART

Astronomy

• ARISTARCHUS OF SAMOSo Disproved the previous belief that the sun was

smaller than Greece.

o Estimated that the sun was at least 300 times larger than the earth.

o Proposed that the earth and other planets revolve around the sun.

Astronomy

• Ptolemy o Incorrectly placed the earth at the center of the

solar system.

• Erathostheneso Closely calculated the earth’s true size.

Highly regarded astronomer, poet, historian, and mathematician.

Used geometry to compute the earth’s circumference at 24,662 miles.

Mathematics and Physics

• EUCLIDo His works were used by Erathosthenes and

Aristarchuso Highly regarded mathematician who opened a school

of geometry in Alexandria.o THE ELEMENTS- 465 carefully presented geometry

propositions and proofs.• ARCHIMEDES of SYRACUSE

o Accurately estimated the value of pi (the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter).

o Explained the law of the lever and invented the compound pulley to lift heavy objects.

Philosophy and Art

• Hellenistic scholars also believed that the universe followed rational principles.

• Philosophy- offered the best way to understand these principles.

STOICISM and EPICUREANISM

STOICISM

• Zeno (335-263 BC) founded stoicism.• It believed in a divine power who controlled the

universe.• Proposed that people should live a virtuous life

in harmony with the natural law.• Vices such as human desires, power, and

wealth were dangerous distractions that should be controlled.

EPICUREANISM

• It was founded by Epicurus.• The universe was composed of atoms and

ruled by gods who had no interest in humans.• Believed that the only real objects were those

that the five senses perceived.• Epicurus taught that the greatest good and the

greatest pleasure came from virtuous conduct and the absence of pain.

REALISM in SCULPTURE

• Colossus of Rhodes• Hellenistic sculpture moved away from

harmonic balance and idealized forms of the classical age.o Creations this time were more realistic and

emtional works.

o 150 BC Hellenistic world was in decline.